The church at Eastside would
like for you to join us in worship. Our worship services
are characterized by simplicity and faithfulness to
Godís plan. Colossians 3:17 says, "And whatever you
do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord
Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him."
This simply means that we need to be sure that we
have the approval of Jesus for all that we do. We
strive to be sure that everything that is done in
our worship is done with the authority of Jesus Christ.
We donít try to please ourselves in our service to
our Lord, but we try to please Him by following the
pattern he has laid out. After all, doesnít he know
what is best for us?

In the New Testament, we find
five acts of worship that were done by the church
that was established by our Lord. These are the same
things that we do in our worship. They are:

Observing the Lordís Supper
- When you visit the worship services at Eastside
you will find that we remember our Lordís death
by observing the Lordís Supper. On the night that
Jesus was betrayed He instituted the Lordís Supper.
He took bread and when he had given thanks, He broke
it and said, "Take, eat; this is My body which is
broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me." In
the same manner He also took the cup after supper,
saying, "This cup is the new covenant in My blood.
This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance
of Me." So, we observe the Lordís Supper in remembrance
of the One who sacrificed His body and blood for
us. We do this each first day of the week because
we have the example of the church in Troas in Acts
20:7. "Now on the first day of the week, when the
disciples came together to break bread, Paul, ready
to depart the next day, spoke to them and continued
his message until midnight." Every week has a first
day and so we do this every first day of the week.

Singing - We also sing.
We simply sing songs, hymns and spiritual songs.
In Ephesians 5:19 Paul instructs the church at Ephesus
by writing, "speaking to one another in psalms and
hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody
in your heart to the Lord." He wrote to the chuch
at Colossae and told them, "Let the word of Christ
dwell in you richly, in all wisdom, teaching and
admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and
spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts
to the Lord." (Colossians 3:16) We have this instruction
from the apostle Paul and that is what we do. You
wonít find an organ or band or anything else, but
simply doing what Paul instructed the churches to
do. We sing.

Prayer - We have prayers
in our worship services. In I Timothy 2:1 we read,
"Therefore, I exhort first of all that supplications,
prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be
made for all menÖ" We pray to God thanking him for
his many blessings and asking for his continued
help. A Christian man is asked to lead the congregation
in prayer and so this eliminates any confusion but
allows us to pray together.

Preaching - Another thing
that we do in our worship is spend time in study
of Godís Word. We are led in that study by a preacher.
Paul did this in Troas as mentioned earlier. When
the disciples came together to break bread, Paul
preached to them. The study centers on Godís Word
and Godís Word alone. The preacher is charged with
the responsibility of presenting lessons that teach
Godís Truth in itís purity and itís simplicity.

Giving - The only other
act of worship that we can find authority for in
the scriptures is giving back to the Lord a portion
of what he has blessed us with. In I Corinthians
16:2, Paul writes, "On the first day of the week
let each one of you lay something aside, storing
up as he may prosper, that there be no collections
when I come." We return to the Lord just as he has
caused us to prosper. A collection is taken to support
the work of the church. That money is used only
as the Lord instructs in His Word.

God has given us a simple plan
for our worship and we try to follow it faithfully.
We believe that Godís plan is perfect in every way
and provides for the most beautiful service that man
can give to Him. Worship that comes out of a heart
that loves Him and is truly obedient will please Him.